Thomas Baker (missionary)
Thomas Baker | |
---|---|
Born | 6 February 1832 |
Died | 21 July 1867 | (aged 35)
Nationality | British |
Thomas Baker (6 February 1832 – 21 July 1867) was a
Final mission
In July 1867, Baker led a party into the interior of
Baker was killed along with seven Fijian Christian workers. The Fijians who were cannibalized with Baker were: Setareki Seileka, Sisa Tuilekutu, Navitalai Torau, Nemani Raqio, Taniela Batirerega, Josefata Tabuakarawa, and Setareki Nadu. Two other men, Aisea and Josefa Nagata, escaped the massacre. After Baker's death, the Davuilevu mission was temporarily closed in 1868.[4]
In 2003, Baker's relatives visited the village for a traditional matanigasau reconciliation ceremony. This was offered in apology for the killing by descendants of Baker's slayers.[5][6]
Legacy
The story of Baker's death is the basis for Jack London's short story "The Whale Tooth".[7][8]
In 1983, the American malacologist Alan Solem named the genus Vatusila "after the Fijian tribe (located at the headwaters of the Sigatoka River) that killed and ate Rev. Thomas Baker, a Wesleyan missionary, on July 21, 1867."[9]
References
- ^ A.B. Brewster, The Hill Tribes of Fiji. Lippincott, Philadelphia, 1922, p. 30
- ^ Kim Gravelle, Fiji's Heritage: A History of Fiji. Tiara Enterprises, Nadi, Fiji, 2000 (first published 1979). p. 103
- ^ Elimeleki Susu, The history of Methodist Theological education in Fiji until 1973. Pacific Theological College, Suva, Fiji, 2009.
- ^ Thornley, Andrew; Exodus of the i Taukei, the Wesleyan Church in Fiji 1848-74; Institute of the Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific; 2001
- ^ Eaten missionary's family get apology. BBC, 13 November 2003.
- ^ Nick Squires (16 August 2007). "Cannibal tribe apologises for eating Methodists". The Daily Telegraph.
- ISBN 978-1-56691-982-1.
- ISBN 978-0-8263-3791-7.
- .